Listen: Jew of The Year and Def Jam Founder Rick Rubin Talks About Being White in Hip Hop

Rick Rubin is a major player in the music industry but if you didn't know him, you wouldn't guess this by looking at him. The man has a seat at the Hip Hop table. He founded Def Jam with Russell Simmons, he then went on to launch American Recordings and then did a stint as Chairman of Columbia Records. He's also worked with some of Hip Hop's biggest stars like Beastie Boys, Kanye West, Jay Z and most recently Eminem. Rick sat down via phone with Paul Rosenberg and DJ Whoo Kid and shared his thoughts about being a white man in Hip Hop and what it was like working with another white man in Hip Hip, Eminem.

Is #TI Worth $200 Million?

Rapper TI and his long time recording home Atlantic Records have opted to go their separate ways after 10 years together. The contract expired around the same time former Warner Music Group (Atlantic parent) head Lyor Cohen stepped down. Now that he's a free agent, T.I is in gambling mode. See he isn't rushing to another major label to record and release a new album, instead he and his Grand Hustle label are "Mr P-ing it" and betting big that the industry will come running. The rapper/businessman says he is doing the independent thing so he can prove to the industry that he and his company are worth $200 million and anyone coming to the table, should come to the table with nothing less than what he is out to prove he is worth.

Let it be known: I am a free agent. I'm operating as an independent label. I do not have corporate sponsors. I don't have no corporate backing.  I don't have no major distribution. We Master-P-ing this shit right now. Everything we putting out we paying for it. It's the grind. It's put me back to where I was when my first record [2001's "I'm Serious"] didn't sell, when I got dropped [from Arista] and I had to prove that I was worthy of a record deal. That's what I'm doing right now. Back then I was proving I was worth $2 million. Right now, I'm proving I'm worth $200 million.

Billboard

Oh, This Fag Can Rap!

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No down low here. Some gay rappers are putting their life on display for all to see whether they like it or not.

The lyrics are from the Harlem-based MC Mykki Blanco. But the sentiment expressed in her after-hours party anthem "Wavvy" is shared by other pioneering rappers who bristle at being defined by their sexual orientation—even as it helps bring attention to their work. The seven artists in this portfolio are wildly diverse, but they're all about as far from the down-low as possible. In the "Wavvy" video, Blanco evolves from a male street tough in a backwards Raiders cap to a vamping glamazon in stilettos. When the rap duo House of Ladosha played New York City in July, Dosha Devastation accentuated her beard with a leopard-print sarong, gold hoop earrings, and a waist-length wig; Cunty Crawford Ladosha, all six feet eleven of him, rocked In Living Color Fly Girl-style biker shorts; and the group closed with their calling card, "B.M.F.," short for "black model famous," a paean to being as fabulous as Naomi Campbell. Artists such as these—once confined to gay clubs and art-world openings—are inching toward the mainstream.

source: details

Watch: The Making of "Watch The Throne"

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Perhaps one of the most talked about collaborations in hip hop history, Jay Z and Kanye West's "Watch The Throne" came and conquered like both artists knew it would. Now two of the world's biggest rappers are taking fans,critics,friends and family behind the scenes of the making of Throne.

Jay-Z & Kanye West - Watch The Throne (Documentary) (2011)

Watch: The Maestro, DJ Premier

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Christopher Edward Martin -aka- DJ Premier, is perhaps one of the most under rated hip hop producers, at least by the pop mainstream. The man has helped some of the biggest artists of yesterday and today, craft their sounds, generating mega hits. After conquering hip hop for over a decade now, Primo as he's called by his friends, wanted to test other waters and so he turned his sites on conducting the Berklee Symphony Orchestra. Lifeandtimes gets into the mind of a legend, a musical genius, DJ Premier.

Food & Rhymes: Action Bronson Spits

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Forget Raekwon The Chef, OK don't forget him but there is only one real chef cooking up lyrical main courses in hip hop today. Remember when we first talked about former chef turned rapper Action Bronson? Well he is at it again, this time around with his new mixtape titled "Blue Chips" and GQ magazine's UK edition nibbled at some of their favorite lines from the the food loving MC. Here are a few of his food heavy lines.

1. "I get cake and prosper / Ate steak and lobster / To Frank Sinatra"

2. "Wood burning brick oven s*** with the furnace / Quattro formaggio / Big plate look like a lobster collage / I'm on the art and the food scene / F*** rap, laying back eating poutine"

3. "It's a damn shame / I'm just chilling eating lamb brain"

4. "Bone marrow roasted / Spread it on the rosemary bread lightly toasted / Drizzle with the vinaigrette"

GQ UK

Boogie Nights!

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Boogie Dash, son of Damon Dash has a CD out titled "Boogie Nights" and dad had to make sure it was released in style. The release party was held at a Dash owned warehouse in Brooklyn NY, with Boogie spinning tunes from the album for a gang of young Brooklyn hipster friends and fans. Damon and his crew were present Check out the video below
Check out "Turnt"



Boogie Dash CD Release Party & Art Exhibition @ Dash Motors Warehouse Saturday March 10th from DD172 on Vimeo.

Which Hop Hop Mogul Loves The Boys?

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There is no secret that Hip Hop has a secret society of so called gangster rappers who rap about what they would do or what they did to women, but in reality, those words and actions could secretly be based on experiences with other men. Gawker wants to know, Which Hip-Hop Mogul Is Not Very Discreet About His Gay Romps With Young Men?

Three young men, to be exact, according to the source. They were all "summoned" to the mogul's apartment for some downlow fun. He was very enthusiastic about giving blow jobs and very effeminate, which is odd, considering his rep as a ladies' man. Our source says that he entertained his visitors "while his assistants typed on their laptops and waited for him to finish."